The Senate Joint Resolution 211 adopted by the 1984 General Assembly requires assurance
that all faculty employed by Tennessee Board of Regents Institutions are proficient
in use of the English language. Pursuant to this resolution, the accreditation standards
of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (4.4.1) and TBR Policy 5:02:01:03 Faculty Proficiency in Oral and Written English, all TBR institutions must establish written guidelines for documentation of compliance
with this requirement.

All recommendations for hiring a new faculty, as defined above, will be accompanied
by confirmation of the faculty member's ability to communicate effectively both in
written and oral format in an academic environment.

The department chair/school director and the appropriate college dean are responsible
for verifying proficiency by such means as required confirming that the candidate
meets the minimum standards described above. No individual shall be appointed to a
position to instruct students without express written confirmation to the President
of such abilities by the chief academic officer, being advised by the appropriate
dean/chair/director of the college/department/school for which the faculty is seeking
appointment. English proficiency for faculty is verified using the Personnel Appointment
Form and the Academic Preparation Certification Form. The University reserves the
right to further assess English language proficiency after a faculty member has been
appointed in order to ensure the quality of direct instruction of its students.

"The foregoing criteria are to be used strictly as a measure of a candidate's ability
to communicate effectively as an instructor and shall not be utilized to arbitrarily
disqualify applicants of certain nationalities". TBR Policy No. 5:02:01:03.

II. REMEDIATION

If it is discovered that assessments were made in error and that a faculty member
is not able to communicate effectively in the academic environment, and if the recommendation
is made for a faculty member to pursue activities such as enrollment in a course in
English as a second language to improve skills in English to meet the above criteria,
it will be the responsibility of the department chair/school director to monitor and
verify remediation efforts and the outcome of same.